One Body & One Spirit
Annual Appeal
Contribute to the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles’ One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal
Annual Appeal
When are grant applications due?
For grants to be awarded December 19, 2023, applications are due November 1.
ANNUAL APPEAL GRANT NEWS
September 22, 2023
One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal grant boosts fundraising
for new AC at Church of the Transfiguration, Arcadia
The air conditioning and heating system at Church of the Transfiguration – a parish approaching its 75th year of ministry in the foothill city of Arcadia – has seen hard service over many years.
The creaking AC units need a lot of maintenance, says junior warden Chuck Millner. One, originally installed in the mid-1970s, is unusable because replacement parts are no longer available. The other two wobble on the edge of failure.
“We cross our fingers a lot,” says Millner.
It will cost about $20,000 to replace the units serving the handsome Romanesque church and the parish hall – money that is not in the church’s budget.
“Someone suggested that we look into a diocesan grant,” says Millner. He was astonished and delighted when the parish received a $10,000 check after the vestry submitted an application to the One Body and One Spirit Annual Appeal fund.
The grant will be used as matching funds for a capital campaign to be carried out during Transfiguration’s fall stewardship season. Because the parish currently is without a rector and depends on a supply priest for Sunday worship, the campaign is entirely lay-led.
Millner is confident that the parish, though small in numbers, will find ways to raise the matching funds. Replacing the AC, he says, will “have a huge effect on everything that takes place on our campus.”
In addition to its longstanding Episcopal congregation, Transfiguration rents space to two Chinese-language congregations that conduct their afternoon services in the parish hall. “It is essential to have air conditioning for their comfort in the summertime,” Millner says.
The rent paid by the two additional congregations helps keep the small parish afloat. “Without air conditioning in our facilities, we would not have their presence,” says Millner, “and without that income we would not be able to keep the lights on and the doors open. We’d be in dire straights.”
Besides, he says, the Chinese congregations enrich Transfiguration’s ministry. “We really mesh well together. Our missions seem to be a natural fit. It’s a godsend. It really is.”
Please join the 207 donors who, to date, have raised $283,821.86 in 323 gifts to the 2022-23 Annual Appeal, through which the Corporation of the Diocese makes grants to congregations and institutions seeking to meet unbudgeted expenses. Click the links above to make a gift or download a grant application packet.
September 15, 2023
In ‘Fiestas Patrias’ spirit, Instituto de Liderazgo celebrates One Body & One Spirit Appeal grant
On this weekend of Fiestas Patrias – patriotic festivals in Mexico and elsewhere in Latin America – the Instituto de Liderazgo, the Spanish-language ministry leadership training program based at Bloy House, is also celebrating a $7,500 technology grant from the diocesan One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal.
The grant will assist Instituto leaders in upgrading their digital resources for the use of program participants as they build skills and share the good news of God in Christ – both in person and online.
The Rev. Carlos Ruvalcaba, Instituto program director, has expressed the group’s gratitude for this new funding and its importance in advancing outreach and pastoral care among the large Hispanic/Latinx community across Southern California, the Central Coast, and beyond.
“During the pandemic, we learned that many of our lay leaders needed basic tech skills and access to computers,” Ruvalcaba said. “Many of these leaders are caring for their congregations, and we did not want them to be left behind. For those who had no computers, we were able to provide 12 laptops, thanks to the One Body & One Spirit grant. The help is huge, and greatly appreciated!”
More about the Instituto program – which includes formation in theology, liturgy, pastoral care, ethics in leadership, preaching, and more – is here in Spanish and here in English. Instituto leaders work closely with the diocesan Program Group on Hispanic/Latino Ministries, which is the local host for the “New Camino” seminar, set for Oct. 20 – 21 in Echo Park, to help church leaders reach various generations of the Latino community. (Read more here.) These programs strengthen the multicultural ministries upheld by Bishop John Harvey Taylor as a priority for the Diocese of Los Angeles.
When congregations and ministry programs encounter unforeseen expenses or identify unbudgeted ministry opportunities, the diocesan One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal is available to assist with grants awarded by the Corporation of the Diocese from funds contributed by generous donors throughout the year.
An Episcopal News report of most recent grants, made in June, is here. November 1 is the deadline for next grants to be awarded in December; the application packet is linked above or here.
To all donors, muchisimas gracias for your support, and to the Instituto de Liderazgo, thank you for your ministries!
Please join the 207 donors who, to date, have raised $283,681 in 323 gifts to the 2022-23 Annual Appeal, through which the Corporation of the Diocese makes grants to congregations and institutions seeking to meet unbudgeted expenses. Click the links above to make a gift or download a grant application packet.
Your support of the diocesan One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal directly assists congregations working to meet unforeseen, unbudgeted expenses – from repairing a roof to sheltering unhoused neighbors.
Congregations seeking Annual Appeal grants are encouraged to review the application and FAQ information available via the “donate” link below.
To all donors, thank you! And to all who are considering a gift, please follow the link to contribute today.
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One Body & One Spirit Annual Appeal.
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Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles is:
Bishop John Harvey Taylor c/o the Rev. Susan Stanton, CFO
Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles
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840 Echo Park Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90026